Reviewed by Larry Paterson

Artist: SWITCHBLADE
Album: Heavy Weapons
Label: Killer Metal Records
Release Date: 29 November 2013

Tracklist:
1. Heavy Weapons
2. Euphoria
3. Metalista
4. Lost Lovers Unite
5. The Lost Kingdom
6. Infernal Paradise
7. Curse Of The Father, Sins Of The Sun
8. Into The Unknown
9. Endless War

I have to admit to not being overly familiar with the state of the metal scene in Israel – SWITCHBLADE’s homeland – but this, their debut album, is a good sign to me. What we have here is a band hammering out what is clearly and unashamedly 1980’s style heavy metal, and they do it with style. Much of this is reminiscent to my ears of the kind of bands that had me hooked on metal way back when: traces of ACCEPT, IRON MAIDEN et al can be heard, but it never lapses into the kind of ‘second-hand Maiden’ that some recent bands peddle as original. SWITCHBLADE play with all the style and passion that made this huge sub-genre of Heavy Rock so popular in the first place, and while there are clear echoes of the bands that have inspired them, they aren’t merely recycling things. Obviously not out to reinvent the wheel, what you have here is nine tracks of solid heavy metal. I like it.

Vocalist  Lior “Steinmetal” Stein stands out straight away with his clear and precise Dickinson-esque voice; nice to be able to not only follow the vocal line melodically, but also hear and get every word he says. The rest of the band are similarly accomplished and play together well; evidence of their eight years or so of existence as a band.  The tasty instrumental ‘The Lost Kingdom’ shows that the music stands perfectly on its own. All the playing is top notch, though if I had one small criticism it would be that some of the drum rolls seem to my ears to kind of ‘go nowhere’, such as in the second track ‘Euphoria’. I’m definitely not criticising Moshe ‘Moshpit’ Sabach’s playing – he knows his way around the kit with gusto – it’s just possible that he lapsed into what some drummers (myself included!) experience as ‘tom roll frenzy’ without contemplating how it sits with the song. A tiny niggle, nothing more.

Overall, I like this album very much. It does exactly what it says on the tin – rocks in a style that is straight down the line red-blooded heavy metal. Also, unlike many bands in the age of the CD where they feel the need to fill as much space on the disc as possible (and running the risk of being too long), this feels like an album structured like good old vinyl albums were (with the space limitations dictated by the format), getting to the end and needing another spin. It’s just a personal thing for me; I get tired of albums padded out to hit the hour mark or whatever. Anyway, if you’re a fan of heavy metal, you’ll like this, I’m sure. I hope it gets them out and about in Europe where they would find a denim and leather audience waiting to bang their heads to this. Hope to see them live on stage somewhere soon.

8/10

Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lS58zSJQcRE

Band Members:
Lior “Steinmetal” Stein – Vocals
Federico “FedeRock” Taich – Guitars
Sascha Latman – Bass
Moshe “Moshpit” Sabach – Drums

https://www.facebook.com/SwitchbladesOfSteel